bpost: investors not convinced by new strategy; shares drop

(CercleFinance.com) - Belgian postal service bpost on Tuesday unveiled its new strategic vision for 2021-26, but failed to convince investors as shares slid more than 7%.


In its presentation, the company said it plans to accelerate its transformation into a "customer centric" and "sustainable omni-commerce" group, while remaining an efficient mail provider in Belgium.

Regarding capital allocation, bpost said it aims to set out a dividend pay-out policy of 30% to 50% of net profit, which is below investor expectations.

"At the mid point we estimate the new policy implies downside of about 35-40% to consensus dividends for 2021 and 2022", one analyst noted.

bpost has also presented a longer term ambition to more than offset EBIT loss from declining mail business over the period 2021-26, but no concrete guidance was given, analysts said.

Its shares were down 7.3% after the company outlined its new strategy.

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